A/N: Phew! Finally got this done! It took DAYS, seriously… and considering how long it took to write, I don't like it all that much. Still… you'll just have to see what you think…

Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh. But I've written to Santa…XD

And now, without further ado…

Going Up?

--- 20th December---5 Days to go!

She lifted her hair up, allowing the hot water to drain down her neck and back, deliciously hot. This morning, she could afford to spend as long as she wanted just enjoying a shower; with no-one else in the house queuing for the bathroom, or running water off in the other rooms, or telling her she needed to do something. Nor did she have anything to do that day, really. It was the first day of the Christmas break, and she had deliberately not made any plans. They'd barely even bothered asking her. They knew this was her day.

However, all good things must come to an end. Téa stepped out, refreshed by her long shower, and dressed. Then she went back into her room, and put out her red flannel pyjamas- a silly tradition, but one none the less. Wearing red pyjamas just seemed to make it all more festive. Téa smiled to herself. 20th December. Just five days to go! Her parents had gone to stay with her aunt over in Ireland as always, but they'd be back by Christmas Eve- In the meantime, it was a perfect time to search the house for presents!

This tradition was becoming increasingly frustrating to Téa. She'd been searching every year since she could remember, but had never found anything. Not a bean. It wasn't even that she wanted to know what she was getting anymore, she'd grown out of that, but she just wanted to find where her parents hid them. She searched every inch of the house, and all for naught- every single year! Maybe they really did summon them down the chimney… But not this year! They wouldn't escape her! She'd find where they'd been hiding all this time! She'd search high and low, in every nook and cranny, and would not stop until she triumphed!

Téa's stomach gave a loud rumble.

That was, after breakfast. Couldn't search on an empty stomach…

She wandered into her kitchen, glad to see no pile of crockery to put away from the night before. But then, why would there have been? She was all alone!

Which also meant she could put the radio on really, really, loudly.

"...And it's only five days to go!" The radio bellowed. "Hope you've all been good this year, 'cause Santa Claus is coming to Town…"

On that note, the song started playing. Really… Christmas was the only time such cheesy music could be a hit… But she sang along anyway, as she searched the fridge for something a little special for breakfast. She felt very pleased with herself when she retrieved a croissant. She was already finding things! Her quest for presents surely wasn't going fail this year! She had a feeling it was her lucky day…

It was only after breakfast that things took a turn for the worse. She left the washing up on the draining board, and ambled down her garden path to collect the post. It had snowed overnight, clean and crisp underfoot. She had several cards, and it looked like the day was just going to be great. She came back in, and realized she'd trod snow all over the floor.

Oh well. She fetched a mop, and, with Christmas music still playing, she mopped. Actually, it was more like a dance. Singing along, she began to get a little carried away...

"And the bells were ringing out for Christmas day!" She sang, rather enthusiastically, going to do a rather fancy pirouette. She really should have known better. Slipping on the wet floor, she tripped over her own feet and slid down, banging her head painfully on the wall on the way.

"Ow…" She said, half-laughing, rubbing her head. "Not such a great idea, Téa…"

It was then that the notice board decided to fall off the wall and hit her on the head.

Téa pinned it back up, grumbling. There were notes and photos of good times everywhere, and now she would get a bruise on her forehead. Why did it have to fall down just when she was sitting underneath it…?

Then she found a posit, underneath her shoe. It was one she remembered putting on about a month ago, that must have got gradually buried.

Reminding her to buy presents for her parents.

Téa screamed. Every year! Every year, she forgot something! She had all her friends' presents, but what kind of daughter forgot to buy a present for her parents!

There wasn't a moment to lose. Téa grabbed her purse, and keys, and headed out the door.

The room was still- there wasn't much going on in there now.

But then, that's hardly surprising. I mean, I guess rooms spend a lot of their time being empty, don't they?

And when rooms are empty, not much happens. Everything just… sits there. And stays still.

Luckily, Téa returned a moment later. For a jacket, scarf, gloves, and some shoes other then her slippers. Then she left, with her breakfast things still forlornly waiting for someone to wash them up. Little did they know, or expect, they'd be waiting even longer then they thought.

The room would be emptier for a lot longer then normal that day.

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By the time she got to the shops, Téa was feeling a lot better. She'd missed her bus- they only ran once an hour in the holidays- but the walk had done her good. It had been nice, seeing all the decorations up in people's windows. Hers weren't up yet- it was very much a family thing for them, and her parents were annoyingly adamant in that they didn't go up until Christmas Eve, when they could put them up together. In many places, she got to make the first set of footprints in a clean patch of snow. Then it had started to snow again. It looked like they were assured a White Christmas. That had made her smile. She hadn't seen a Christmas Day dawn under a blanket of snow for a long time… it just added to the magic of the season for her.

She entered into the warmth of the shopping centre, face red from the cold and bright from the excitement and joviality of the season. She was almost glad to be back. She loved Christmas Shopping- it was fun, trying to find the perfect gift for everyone, and trying to keep it secret. Then there was the nice, quiet, feeling when you were safe in the assurance that you'd got someone something they'd really love. The shops, to, looked so pretty when they were surrounded by lights clustered in various displays, with tinsel and fake snow in every crevice, and more cheesy music- 'Driving Home for Christmas', this time- playing. At this time of day, there really weren't that many people here either. Now that the snow left clinging to her hair and clothes had more or less melted, leaving her shining, she pressed on. She had to find that special something for her parents, and that was not a task to be taken lightly.

Besides, she still had to find those gifts of hers when she got home…

Téa knew the centre well, all three floors that the general public had access to. The fourth was all the offices of the businesses housed there, and that was all she knew of it. As she wandered aimlessly past fake snowmen and Santa's, she spotted 'Marks & Spencer's' poking out from under a mass of tinsel and sale signs. Hmm… Maybe she could get her mom some nice perfume, or maybe a blouse…

However, the first thing she saw was some rather funny Christmas underwear. There was lots of fur… and what looked like flashy lights… and… Téa gained an uncharacteristic evil grin. She was going to Mai's 'All-girl Christmas Sleepover' tomorrow… And since there were no guys around… Perhaps an extra present for the hostess was in order…Oh, how they'd laugh… Quickly nipping into the Boots next door, she picked up all the boring stuff, ticking off the mental list- Tissues, paracetomol, plasters, bandages, vitamin tablets, deodorant, soap, shampoo… She disappeared into many other shops, everything from book shops to cafés to software shops and generally had a grand old time.

All was going well- fruitless on the parent front, but fun- when she wanted to reach the third floor of the shopping centre from her position on the second. The escalators were out of order (Typical!), but the lift seemed to be working. She could see on the lit-up display that it was on the ground floor, and moving up. Hastily, she pressed the call button- she didn't want to miss it.

Eventually, the lift appeared, and she slid gratefully between the doors. She didn't realise they wouldn't be opening again for some time.

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

Mokuba was an impatient person. He'd decided to wait half an hour after Seto left for his meeting to begin. After all, he reasoned, that would give Seto enough time to get sufficiently far away from home that, had he forgotten anything, he wouldn't come back for it.

The flaw in this plan was that Mokuba's attention span wasn't that long.

Mokuba just about managed to give him five minutes, bouncing impatiently on the sofa, and then sprung up, pounding up several flights of stairs, along corridors, around corners, through rooms, somehow keeping track of where he was going. If Seto didn't have time, why shouldn't Mokuba do it himself? How hard could it be to put up some Christmas Decorations?

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

The ride in the lift looked like it was going to be fine. For one thing, it was empty, so there was none of the unpleasant crushing- she supposed there must be someone on the top floor waiting to go down- and they had changed the usual music in favour for Christmas songs. Téa, in true festive spirit, couldn't resist singing along.

"…Another rock and roll Christmas! Another Christmas rock and roll! All dressed up, here we go, do I hear sleigh bells in the snow? Another…rock…" Téa trailed off as she became aware of someone chuckling quietly at her. "Kaiba!" She exclaimed.

Yup, it was Kaiba alright. She couldn't believe she'd failed to notice him before- after all, his trench coat took up a great majority of the room. "What…When…How… How dare you laugh at me!"

He smirked. "If you will make a fool of yourself, Gardner…"

Téa reddened, and hoped he'd think it was out of anger, not embarrassment. Dancing was her thing, not singing. She could carry a tune when she tried, she honestly could. But when she thought no-one was around to hear…

"Well, I'd like to hear you do better!" She replied, hotly. "I bet you can't sing either."

He raised an eyebrow. "Really? And how would you know?"

Téa shrugged, unable to stop herself smirking right back at him. "Prove me wrong, if you dare. I bet you can't."

Seto, true to form, was unable to resist any test. "Is that an actual challenge?" He demanded.

"You bet it is!" Téa folded her arms. "Next song that comes on, you sing along!" She nodded up at the speaker.

"Well, I'd love to." Seto said, coldly. "However, there's no music."

Téa listened, and, sure enough, he was right. The music had cut off, and she hadn't noticed in the midst of their argument. "Why has it-" She began, only to be interrupted by the lights going out and the lift jolting to a stop.

In the darkness, nothing moved.

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

Meanwhile, the intrepid explorer pressed on. In the semi-twilight of the Kaiba's loft, there seemed to be no time. It could have been only five minutes that he had been pressing through dust, undisturbed all year, and the forest of spider webs, or it could have been an eternity. There was just no way to tell.

At last, though, Mokuba spied a large box. This had to be it, surely. He pounced on it, already mentally celebrating his success. If this wasn't the decorations, he'd eat his metaphorical hat. Metaphorical as he didn't actually own a hat.

He frowned as he realised that the box was firmly sealed shut, taped all over, slightly tainting his sense of victory. However, not one to be defeated so easily, he patiently and painstakingly ripped piece after piece off, peeled and tore until his fingers were sore and his fingernails worn away. But he got the box open.

It seemed he would be eating his metaphorical hat for lunch. Just as soon as the lump in his throat got out of the way.

Out of the dark depths of the box, his own, much younger, face peered back at him; from the top of his father's shoulders. His mother was there to, her hands on the shoulders of Seto, no older then Mokuba himself was now. Judging by their ages, it must have been one of the last pictures they'd all had together. They were standing by the ocean, to, so he supposed it must have been the last holiday before… He was too young to remember.

He lifted the picture out, and, sure enough, the box was full of photographs. Lose, in frames, entire albums, wallet sized ones… Mokuba looked through them all, the silence stifling. He thought the reason they had no photographs of his parents up, to remember them by, was because they hadn't been allowed to keep any. Now he realised it must have been Seto, not wanting to remember.

But he was smiling on every single photo. He had been happy. Maybe he needed to be reminded of that…

Determinedly, Mokuba packed all the pictures back into the box. It looked like he had even more work to do then he thought to get the house ready for Christmas. Seto couldn't store the past in the attic forever.

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

Téa picked herself up slowly. "I think we stopped…" She said, uncertainly.

"Really?" Seto answered, drably. "I never noticed."

"Oh, be quiet." Téa told him, slightly peeved. "What do you think happened?"

"The lift stopped." Seto informed her, as if she was a young child.

Téa knew he was deliberately goading her. So she just smiled sweetly. "Gee, Seto, I'm so glad you're here! How would I manage without you?" She could have sworn he smiled in amusement. She was sure, that, in a flickering, passing second, he'd found her funny. But then she thought that it was probably just a trick of the almost none-existent light, trickling in from outside the door. However, lift shafts aren't known for being all that bright, and this one was no exception. Just enough daylight was coming through the cracks in the door to see a hand in front of your face, to see the other, a vague outline, a few lines of features, lurking in the shadows, but that was it. Téa managed to find the control panel and hit the alarm button.

Nothing happened.

Hopefully, she pressed it again.

Nothing continued to happen.

Then she pounded it a final time, just out of frustration. Now she was stuck in a lift and couldn't even get a message out to the centre to say they were trapped! "Who's brilliant idea was it to have the alarm connected to the same electrics as the rest of the lift!" She demanded.

"I don't think it is." Seto replied, suddenly appearing next to her. For once, he didn't sound superior or full of himself, and it was odd. "I think the power must be out for the entire centre."

"What makes you say that?" Téa asked, curiously.

"It's so dark." Seto answered. "Legally, you have to put lights in lift shafts every once in a while. For maintenance work, you see."

Téa supposed he would know what he was talking about. The Kaiba Corp. Main Office was huge. It'd figure that there'd be a lift in there somewhere. She gathered up her scattered bags from the sudden stop, then sank down next to them. Nothing to do but to wait. At least Kaiba seemed to be feeling friendlier then usual- on her own in here, it would have been really boring… Of course, he disagreed.

"Well," Téa sighed roughly. "I'll guess we'll just have to wait it out."

He didn't answer, sitting down on the oppisite side of the lift.

"I'm sure there's some way we can pass the time…" Téa tried. Seto just snorted.

"Like what, Gardner? I Spy?"

"No need to be like that." Téa pouted. He was so impossible sometimes… Well, she had never backed down from a challenge yet. Any company was better then no company, even if it was Seto Kaiba…

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

While Téa sat in a lift that was going nowhere, Serenity was sitting on a train that was just beginning on it's way.

"This is the 10:48 to Tokyo!" The train announcer had just got married, and the perpetual excitement in his voice was enough to make Serenity crack up every time. "Calling at Central Tokyo, Tomeda, Domino City, Juujban…"

Serenity stopped listening. She was half wishing the journey away, and half wishing she would never get there. Joey had come and spent Christmas with her and their mom last year, which meant that, legally, she had to spend this year with her dad. It'd be nice to see Joey, and all her friends again, but…Well, she wasn't so keen on seeing him. Joey told her he was a lot better, but…

She sighed, sinking deeper into the chair. There were a lot of stops to go before Domino, a lot of time would elapse, and worrying wouldn't make it go any faster.

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

Thump.

She wasn't going to react.

Thump.

No, if he didn't want a conversation…

Thump.

It didn't matter how much longer he kept it up.

Thump.

Not a peep.

Thump.

…

Téa smiled, proud of herself. So, it seemed Kaiba had finished whatever he was doing to the ceiling. And, even after he had kept it up for ages, she hadn't said a word. Score one for her!

Except, he wasn't done.

Thump…creak…

Téa forced herself not to look. She wasn't going to watch… she wouldn't watch… Kaiba disappearing through the ceiling.

Giving up on ignoring what he was doing, Téa went over the hole. In true movie style, he'd managed to open up the top of the lift. And now he had disappeared through the distinct lack of tile, and was nowhere to be seen.

"…Kaiba?" Téa called after a slight hesitation. A moment later, his head rematerialized over the hole.

"Yes?" He said, sounding irritated. Now, that annoyed Téa. Why should he be angry! She wasn't the one who had punched a hole in the ceiling tiles and disappeared!

"What are you doing!" She demanded.

"Why should I explain myself to you?" He sighed, tiredly, as if this was an age old conversation. He left again.

"Kaiba!" Téa yelled. "Would you do me the courtesy of coming back here and telling me what you're up to!"

"If you're that desperate, why don't you come up and see?" Seto muttered, looking around again. However, he found it very hard to concentrate with Gardner's voice penetrating his thoughts every few seconds.

"I heard that, Kaiba! I'm not coming up there! Why don't you come down here! If you're going to get us killed, I'd appreciate being told to my face! Is it even allowed to be going up there! I hope you're not ignoring me, because I-!"

"Gardner." Seto interrupted, on the edge of his patience. "How often are you going to get the opportunity to stand on top of a stationary lift? If you want to know what's going on, come up. If you don't, stop asking. So, come up or shut up!"

There was silence from below, for such a length of time that Seto almost hoped she'd favoured his latter suggestion. But his point that she might never get chance again had struck a chord with her, and she was… Hey, you only live once.

"Kaiba?"

Seto sighed. "What?"

"I'd like to come up."

"Whoop-de-do."

"…I'm going to come up."

"Come on, then."

"…We're not all as tall as you, you know!" Téa snapped. "Some of us are only average height! Why did you ask me up when you know perfectly well I'm not tall enough to reach, and-"

Seto growled in frustration. "Why must you always yell!" He shouted back. Then he leant down through the hole. "I suppose you want help?"

Téa frowned up at his face. "Not if you put it like that!"

Seto rolled his eyes, pushed his arms down, and pulled her up.

Téa blinked in surprise. He had such nice hands… and he was stronger then he looked…

"Now. Stand there. Be quiet." Seto commanded. And, for once, Téa was too stunned to argue.

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

Mokuba Kaiba was not the only one decorating. On the other side of the city, in a block of flats, Ryou was putting the last of the decorations on the tree.

"Only one thing left…" He muttered, putting up a chair. It was only a small tree, so he didn't need much of a boost. Carefully, he positioned the old angel on top of it. "There." Ryou didn't know who he was talking to. He found he talked a lot more to himself then to anyone else. Or, at least, he was the only one who heard what he said. Unless the walls really did have ears… And, if they could hear, he might just as well talk to them. "What do you think?" He asked the room in general as he pushed the chair back to where it originally was. "Good?"

The room gave no reply.

Ryou laughed quietly at, to, with, himself, shaking his head. He really was getting rather eccentric, talking to the walls… He blamed the season. Every year, he promised he wouldn't bother with it- there wasn't much point celebrating when you lived all alone. But then… Well, he always remembered how much his sister had loved the time of year, and how much fun they'd had together hanging ornaments on the tree, and the tinsel tug-of-war, and all the other silly kiddy things they'd done... Their mom taking them to the Pantomime, and their dad coming home for Christmas… When they'd hide in the cupboard under the stairs, hoping to catch a glimpse of Father Christmas himself…

Ryou swallowed hard, forcing himself to smile. He glanced across the room, to the one photo he allowed himself to keep out. Then he walked over, and picked it up. It was one of the few photos they'd had taken with all four of them together, and probably the last. He remembered having it taken, the day before his father had gone on that trip to Egypt. The trip that he would never return from. Instead of his dad, Ryou had got back an artefact that was more then a little cursed. After that day, he'd stopped smiling.

"I'm smiling now." Ryou declared, slamming it back down. Better to keep the memories pressed inside the frame then lurking in his mind. "A little bit mad, perhaps, but I'm happier." He laughed at himself again. "It's just hard… When the only person to wish a Merry Christmas to is yourself." An accusing silence fell. "Oh, and the walls, of course." Ryou added.

That was better.

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She knew he wanted her to be quiet, but she just couldn't suppress a gasp. It was only a lift shaft, yet it seemed infinitely strange, like something off a Science Fiction film. She could honestly say she'd never been anywhere like it.

The shopping centre was huge, but had been built by the lowest bidder. So, as it was, all the lifts were in the centre of the building, and rather then being in separate, small, enclosed shafts. The result was almost a hollow tube, running throughout the four floors. She could see the other three lifts, also still. She wondered who was in them, if anyone. Seto had been right- there were lights, all out. It was a slightly nerve-wracking, exciting feeling, to see that all that held the lift motionless was some cables, a glorified, electric-fied, pulley, that she entrusted her life to without question. They were still several metres away from the platform that she realised with a jolt lead onto the third floor. The shaft stretched out even further above her, only up another floor, which inside the lift would feel like nothing, but here seemed like it would reach the stars. And below…

"Wow…" She muttered, leaning over to look down. She felt the slightest pressure on her shoulder. As soon as she turned round to look at him, however, it was gone.

…She felt almost regretful…

"Careful." Kaiba cautioned, roughly. "If you fall down there, I'll have to waste weeks convincing the police I didn't push you to your splattered death."

"Hmmph." Téa snorted, but took a step back and took hold of the cable none the less. "Nice to know you care."

"Yes." Seto said, sarcastically. "I'm quite sure I would be lost without you." He continued with what he was doing. Téa watched in a mixture of wonder and amusement.

Thumb and first finger spread slightly apart, the rest of his hand clenched, he was holding it aloft; eyes focused on the oppisite wall of the cavernous shaft. Slowly, carefully, he rotated his hand- keeping his first finger where it had begun. Now his hand was ever so slightly higher, and his thumb was above the finger.

Téa gave up figuring out what he was doing on her own. He would always be a mystery to her, she supposed.

"Why?" She asked simply.

Kaiba looked at her like she was an idiot who wouldn't understand, and went back to what he was doing.

"Oh, wait!" Téa said, suddenly, her voice echoing in the space around them. "I get it! You're judging the distance, aren't you?"

"Very good." Kaiba said, grudgingly impressed.

"And, taking into account our distance from the other wall, you don't need to be to the same scale!" Téa realised triumphantly. He could spread out his fingers only a small distance, but on the wall over there, it would measure a full metre. "Clever." She commented. "Only…"

Distracted, Seto risked a glance at her, completely losing count. "Only…?"

Téa looked at the oppisite wall, back at his hand, to the wall, his hand…

Suddenly, she sprang across the small distance, feet clanging on the metal floor. Or roof. Before Seto knew what was happening, she was behind him.

"Gardner, what are you-"

"Hmm…" She said, taking hold of his arm and keeping it still. Seto jumped at the contact. It was strange… Her hands were smooth, he noticed, with long fingers and cared for skin, but her grip was strong and firm, so that he couldn't have gotten free even if he'd tried.

Which brought up another question- Why hadn't he tried?

Soon, all thoughts save one were driven from his mind as Gardner unconsciously rested her head on his shoulder, still musing. And then all he could think was in single words:

What…? Why…? She… I… How…?

He felt her fingers on his own. He was screaming to push her away, but if he did, she would fall off into the shaft! He didn't want a murder on his hands… Carefully, she moved his fingers ever so slightly further apart, looked again, and smiled in satisfaction.

"There." She said, cheerily. "You were a bit off before, but that should do it!" She let go of him and backed off, apparently thinking nothing of it. She was watching him expectantly, and, seeing that she probably had judged the difference better then he, Seto forced himself to measure the distance between one floor and the next.

"What do you reckon?" She asked, as his arm flopped back down to his side, a little stiff after being held high for so long.

Seto shook his head. "It's the most annoying position possible." He sighed. "We must be right in the middle of the two floors. Too far to climb either way."

"Oh…" She sighed. "Well, it was a bit of a dumb idea anyway."

"Oh?" He snarled. "I have places to get to, Gardner, and I don't intend-"

"You're bleeding." She interrupted suddenly.

"What?"

"Look!" She snapped, leaping on him again, grabbing his wrist, and waving his hand in his face. Now both had felt her touch. Both were tingling. Sure enough, he'd grazed his knuckles and fingertips quite severely when he had been punching through the cheap plywood cover and removing the metal ceiling tile beneath.

She tutted. "I didn't realise you wanted to try and climb out! Why can't you just wait like a normal person?"

Once again, she didn't let him speak.

"Come on!" She called, slipping gracefully back down through the hole. "I brought some plasters earlier…"

Seto followed her, there being no more that could be done on top of the roof. "I don't need your help." He snarled.

"So you like bleeding everywhere?" She snorted. "Oh, I'm sure having blood rubbed off your jacket cuffs makes such a good impression. Get a plaster. They're in the Boots bag."

Seto looked at her small pile of bags, and wondered just what she'd brought. He didn't see one from the pharmaceutical company, though.

"Where?" He asked, wearily.

"Oh, I don't know!" She said, impatiently, her back to him. She was desperately trying the alarm button again. "I think I put it in the Marks and Sparks bag."

Seto grinned in spite of himself. "Marks and Sparks?" He echoed

"Oh, be quiet."

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Yugi was not happy. He was here, on the first day of the holidays, in the shop, standing, bored. As always when he had spare time. Grandpa said his being there was good for business.

Now, however, Grandpa had 'nipped out'- which meant he could be gone for hours, and Yugi had to watch the shop for him.

"Some holiday…" He sighed, shaking his finger, trying to dislodge a piece of sticky tape. He was getting into a bit of a mess, trying to wrap up his Grandpa's present. Not that the old man really deserved it…

But, deep down, Yugi did care for his Grandfather, and his grandfather for him. In fact, that's where he had 'nipped out' to. He was proud of Yugi, and he sometimes found it hard to show. Plus, with the Shadow Games hanging around, he was always kinda worried that each Christmas would be their last. So he wanted to make this one very special- and not just with another smiling picture to put in the album, either. In order to do that, however, he'd need a very good plan…

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"Still dead." Téa announced, glumly, turning around. "The power must still be out… Man, I hope they know we're in here… I thought I told you to get a plaster!" She said, noticing his still red and raw hands.

"And I said I didn't need your help." Seto replied, though not as harshly as he could have done, and he didn't meet her eye. And… Maybe it was just hot, but was his face actually going red…?

It was with sudden, crashing, high velocity, that the remembrance hit Téa of what, exactly, was in the Marks and Spencer's bag.

Now she was going red to. This had to be one of the all time most embarrassing situations… And…

Gah! He wouldn't know she'd brought them as a joke present for Mai! What if he thought they were…?

"Kaiba…" After a strong, gasping start, she trailed off. What was she even going to say? And then a thought suddenly occurred to her. "What are you doing here, anyway?" She pulled a plaster out and handed it to him.

Seto raised an eyebrow as he accepted it and, peeling off the protective plastic, applied it. "The doors won't open?" He suggested.

"No, no!" Téa replied. "I mean… Well, you don't strike me as the shopping kind…"

Seto wondered vaguely where she thought he acquired everything if not in a shop. The internet, perhaps? He didn't bother commenting. The fact was, he loathed shopping. Especially so close to Christmas, when they were jam-packed. "As a matter of fact, I had a meeting to attend." He sniffed.

"On four floor?" Téa asked. "I mean, flour four. No, Floor Fur. Four! Ahh!" She screamed in irritation as she got her words more and more mixed up. "You know what I mean."

Seto smirked. "No?"

She groaned. "You just want to hear me get my words mufuddled!" She accused.

"Mufuddled?"

Even Téa had to laugh. "Oh, leave me alone. Do you have a meeting on Floor…four?" She smiled in triumph. "There! That's the one!"

"Yes, I do." Seto replied, adding "With an owner of one of the electronics stores." He checked his watch. "Or, I did…" He sighed.

"Wait, you always carry a mobile, right?" Téa tried. "You could phone and say you were going to be late! Or phone for help!"

Kaiba looked at her so scornfully, it was like she had said the dumbest thing ever heard by the ears of mankind.

"What?" She asked, defensively.

Kaiba proceeded to launch into a list of exactly what had been wrong with her suggestion.

"One, do you think I'd get any respect if they knew I was trapped in a lift?" He demanded. "Two, think about where we are, Gardner. What's the likelihood of getting a signal in here! And three, I don't even have it with me."

"Why?" She asked. Seto kicked himself. That darned cheerleader of Yugi's was so nosy, he really should have thought more carefully about what he'd said…

"None of your business." He answered, rudely. To be honest, he'd broken it when he had spilt a mug of coffee (black) over it. But she didn't need to know that, did she?

"Fine, Scrooge." She sighed. "But you didn't answer the question. Isn't there a special lift just up to the fourth floor? Why come through the centre?"

She was annoyingly perceptive.

"…I had to buy something."

"Like what?"

Seto scowled at her, hoping she'd be put off and not ask anything more. To his chagrin, though, she dived onto his single carrier bag. "Gardner! What do you think you're doing! Do you want me to get security down here!"

Téa snorted. "While we're trapped in a lift? I'd like to see you try!" She pulled the bag towards her and poked around inside.

"Tell me…" Seto growled, attempting to snatch his bag back, but she just turned and avoided him. "Are you always this nosy?"

"Just when I'm bored." She smirked back, finally managing to get a look inside the bag. "Besides, you got to see what was in my bag, so now it's only fair I look in yours!"

It was only when she said that that it occurred to Seto he wasn't bored. Gardner was so hard to keep up with, he'd been entertained. On his own, he surely would have died of boredom by now. He'd almost prefer it to suffering her company.

"Hmm…" She said, smirking, and handing the Game bag back to him. "Funny. I never had you pegged as a video gamer."

"I'm not!" Seto insisted, so fiercely that she blinked in surprise. "Do you think I have the time for silly games, Gardner?"

"You find time to be beat by Yugi enough." She responded slyly. "Still, if it's not for you, who is it for, huh?"

"Mokuba." Seto told her, coldly. Her look of surprise was enough to tell him what he wanted to know, and what she thought of him. "Despite what you seem to believe, Gardner, I'm not a total Scrooge. I do get him presents."

"Hmmph." She half-laughed. "I can't imagine you being Mr Christmas Spirit, somehow. So, what's Santa bringing him this year?"

"He doesn't believe in Santa." Seto said, blankly.

"Yeah…" She agreed sheepishly. "He's a little too old and too smart for that, huh?"

"Yes." Seto told her, firmly. "He hasn't believed in Santa Claus for years. I can't understand why people lie to their children in the first place."

Téa looked at him, shocked. "You wouldn't tell your kids about Father Christmas bringing presents down the chimney?"

"Of course not." Seto sighed. "What's the point? It just encourages greed- lists and lists of presents- and brings more damage when they realise he's a fake."

"I guess." Téa said, thoughtfully. "Yeah… I guess it is a little corrupt… But, Santa is a dream. And, you know, the idea of there being someone out there who gives for no good reason… That's not greed. I think growing out of Santa Claus is all part of growing up, really."

Maybe for you. Seto thought, silently studying her. She really believed in what she was saying. But I bet you didn't find out that he wasn't real because an older boy told you. And proved it by showing you where all the presents were kept. Not that they were anything special…

But he couldn't blame her. She must have had a good childhood. Otherwise, she'd be just like him.

"You talk about greed…" She said, suddenly, sounding curious. "But… Aren't you the richest man in the city? The country? And, correct me if I'm wrong, but you're not exactly famous for your charity work."

"…" Seto hesitated, turning away. "I earnt what I have. No-one, especially not some old man in a red suit, gave that to me."

Silence fell for some time after that.

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

There was only so long you could sit in silence. After all, a lift isn't the most exciting place in the world to be. And so, after about an hour or two of uncomfortable silence, Téa stood, numb after sitting on the floor for so long. Seto, who had been sitting, legs straight out in front of him, opened one eye, making sure she wasn't going to do anything stupid. He was happy to pretend to be asleep when nothing was happening. He may have dozed off at one point, certainly, since it only felt like five minutes since he'd ended the conversation, but he still longed for something, anything to talk about. Even to Gardner. That's how desperate he was.

She was stretching, arms above her head as she yawned. Her top was riding up slightly, showing her flat stomach. So. She really did have a figure like everyone said. He couldn't say he'd noticed. However, he knew she scored pretty low in the rankings of girls. Apparently, she was a 'looker', but far too fiery and spunky for anything. Well, he'd agree with the latter half. He'd been on the receiving end of that temper all too often.

She saw he was looking at her. "Oh, so you're awake." She grinned, letting her arms drop back down. "Good. Even your conversation is better then none."

"I wasn't asleep." Seto told her.

"Sure." She didn't sound like she believed him. "So… Nice here, isn't it?"

Seto looked around at their small prison.

"Oh, yes." He agreed, flatly. "Lovely views."

She giggled sunnily. That surprised him. The way she yelled at him all the time, about friendship or not, he almost expected it to be a kind of witches' cackle…

"What?" She asked.

"What what?" He asked, trying not to laugh at the visions of Téa in a pointy witch hat, over a cauldron, riding a broom…

"…You are!" She declared, amazed, peering closely at his face. "You're smiling!"

"No, I'm not." Seto denied. He wondered if she liked cats…

"Yes you are!" She hooted. "I don't believe it! I didn't know you were capable of anything but a frown and a smirk!"

"Yes, well, there's a lot you don't know about me." Seto said, trying to change his smile into a smirk. He had to ask… He couldn't resist… "Cats?"

She blinked in confusion. "Cats?"

"Cats or dogs?" He asked, simply. Say cats… He willed. Say cats…

"Oh, dogs." Téa said, immediately. Seto sighed. Seeing that her answer was somewhat a disappointment, she had to add "I've always hated cats. Why do you ask?"

Seto shrugged. "No reason!" He said, hastily.

Little did he know, that little movement had surprised Téa. It was strange, but the smile, and the shrug… She was beginning to think he was a lot more human then he first appeared…

"I had a dog, once." Seto reminisced, quietly. "A German Shepherd, no less."

"What was it's name?" Téa asked.

"Wuff." Seto said, calmly.

Téa couldn't suppress a hoot of laughter. "Wuff!" She echoed, sputtering through her giggles. But, even she could see that small, shy, smile of amusement on Kaiba's face. It almost didn't suit him; or maybe that was just because she had never seen it before.

"Blame a two-year old Mokuba for that one." Seto snorted, sounding like he was about to laugh himself. "Who couldn't quite get the hang of the word 'woof'." He added.

Téa laughed. It seemed strange, but now, she was finding out more about him then all the times they'd bumped into him. She realised with a jolt that he was relaxed. That was what was so different about him! With nothing to be done but wait, rather then getting irritated as she'd expect, he seemed to have chilled out…

"If you stare any longer, I'll have to start charging." Seto said, dryly. Téa had been giving him a rather strange look. She turned away, embarrassed. "Although… I'd like to know what was so interesting that you zoned out like that."

"I was just thinking…" She mumbled, so quiet, Seto almost didn't catch it. "That you seemed a lot more relaxed then usual, Kaiba…"

"…Oh." Seto replied, not sure what to say to that. He supposed it was true. When he'd first been trapped in here, he had wanted to get out. He had been annoyed. But now… It had been several hours, but rather then being more angry then ever, she was right, he'd relaxed. He'd already missed his meeting, so… Well, he hardly ever got any time away from work, so he might as well make the best of it. Besides, Gardner's company wasn't as bad as he'd feared. Bearable, at least. "Well, I'm just not as bored as I would have been in that meeting."

She laughed again. Not at him, at something he'd said- he was making her laugh.

He supposed Christmas was supposed to be the time for miracles, after all.

"Yeah, I bet they're not much fun…" She sobered up. "Still. I bet you have a better attention span then I do. The second I'm bored, my mind flies away."

"Where to?" Seto asked, curious.

"The land of rainbows and sunshine!"
"…Naturally."

"Quite."

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

Téa pressed a hand to her mouth, the laughter escaping out through the gaps between her fingers. "No!" She screamed.

"Yes." Seto insisted, glumly. "You may laugh, I was terrified."

Téa laughed harder.

"Anyway, I managed to avoid her- just about." Seto continued.

"How?" Téa gasped.

"By pretending to cough and leaning forward at the right moment." He explained. There was that weird smile again… "I made my excuses and walked away."

"Thank goodness." Téa sighed in relief.

"No, she wasn't about to give up!" Seto told her. "She came with me. And you'll never guess what she did next…"

"What?"

"Proposed."

"No!"

"Seriously!" Seto chuckled. "Well, I was a little… surprised, to say the least."

"Just how old was she?" Téa giggled, imagining Kaiba's face at this unwanted advance.

"Forty-Five." Seto grimaced.

Téa was practically crying with laughter by this point. "Goodness! What did you do?"

"I politely declined, of course!" Seto cried.

Téa snorted. "'Politely'? Yeah, I bet."

"Actually." Seto bristled. "I used that old 'It's not you, it's me' line."

"Awww." Téa smiled, surprised. "Well… That was nice of you."

"Hmm." Seto nodded. "I told her it was me- First off, I was too young to get married. But, mostly…" He smirked evilly. "I said that it wasn't her fault I couldn't commit to a wrinkled old freak."

Téa collapsed into laughter again, and swatted his arm. "Kaiba! You can't say things like that!"

"Yes, I can." He smirked. "The best part was that I tried to walk off, and she was yelling at me, and coming after me, wanting my blood from the sounds of things, and slipped into a pile of mud." When Téa's laughter had died down somewhat, he concluded: "And the moral of the story is: Never agree to meeting for dinner to discuss business."

"Oh, man…" Téa half-sighed, half-laughed. "You do have the most… Interesting experiences, you business men. Although, saying that, I once dated this guy who…"

It was amazing, how easily the conversation flowed. After he had told her about his old dog, it had continued in this way. That morning, Téa would never have believed she could actually be holding, and enjoying a conversation with Kaiba; and he felt the same way about talking to her. But Téa knew a miracle when one came, and she never let one pass her by.

Seto snorted. "I find that hard to believe." He said, in response to what she was telling him. "What self-respecting man would do that?"

"It's true!" Téa insisted, jumping to her feet. "He stood just like…" She demonstrated. "This!"

Kaiba smirked. No, grinned would be a better word. And he opened his mouth. Could it be? Was Seto Kaiba actually going to laugh? A real, out loud, found something funny laugh? Christmas was the time for miracles…

Then, suddenly, the lights came back on, the brightness dazzling, and the lift jolted back to a start. Téa stumbled, toppling over Seto's outstretched leg and sprawling head long, both of them hitting their heads off the metal wall of the lift.

"We apologize for the delay!" The lift PA repeated happily, over and over.

"Oh, it's fine…" Téa grumbled, hurriedly picking herself up and rubbing her head. That would be the second bruise on her forehead, then…

"At last!" Seto rejoiced, climbing to his feet as soon as Gardner was off them. "We've only been in here… We've been in here five hours!"

"No way!" Téa yelled. How could so much time have passed!

Seto just stood there muttering darkly something about suing whoever he could get his hands on.

"Hmm…" Téa sighed. "I never did get those presents… Hey!" She remembered, suddenly. "We still have a bet on! You still haven't sung for me!"

"…What?" Seto snapped, annoyed again now.

Téa folded her arms. "You said you'd sing!"
Seto smirked, remembering. "Oh, yes, I did, didn't I? But, oh dear, we're almost out. There's no time now."

Téa pulled out his hand, and a pen from her pocket, scribbling something on his hand- a habit Seto detested.

"What's this?" he asked, looking, eyebrows raised, at the small, neat print running across his palm.

"My MSN addy." Téa sniffed. "So we can decide when you're going to complete the bet!"

Seto rubbed his forehead. "You're not going to drop that, are you?"

"No." Téa said, firmly.

Seto smiled slightly.

"There it is again!" Téa said, slightly annoyed. "What are you smiling at now?"

"I…" Seto began. "I was just thinking that you-"

The wall he was leaning on suddenly became an open set of doors, and he tumbled out of the lift he'd been trapped in for so long in a most undignified manner.

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

--- 23rd December---2 Days to go!

As it was, it was a few days before Téa had time to get online and check her E-mail. The 21st and 22nd had been Mai's sleepover- fun and wild as ever; even without any under alcoholic influence. The 'joke' present had gone down very well, and Téa had told them all about the way the sales clerk had looked at her, but, for some reason, couldn't bring herself to relate the story of Kaiba finding them.

Indeed, she hadn't told anyone anything about her experience of being stuck in a small room with him for several hours. She had to admit, when she'd got home, she had felt stupidly happy considering how she'd spent her day. And it still made her insides quiver to think about it, a smile coming to her face every time she saw a lift or a Kaiba Corp. product. She had actually had fun. And, for some reason, she wanted to keep that story secret. Safe.

That morning, she had been forced to go out shopping again, but the escalators were back in use. The lift they'd been in was out of order now. Something to do with a broken panel in the ceiling. Anyway, she had found some nice gifts for her parents at last, and everything was set for Christmas day! Except the fact her parents weren't home yet, and that didn't bother her too much. They'd be back tomorrow.

She was smiling again. She had been out that afternoon with everyone, even Yugi had managed to get the afternoon off, and they'd been to the park. They had originallywanted to go somewhere indoors, away from the long-lasting snow and cold, but the problem was that you generally had to pay for that. And they were all rather burned out after Christmas shopping.

They were all spending Christmas with their assorted families, and so, this was the last time they'd see each other before the big day. Which meant a lot of gift swapping. Then, it had been the usual things teenagers do in the snow- the same as little kids. You could tell where they'd been- there were snow men, snow angels, and plenty of snow missing from where they'd picked it up to throw. And with some of the hair her friends had, it had to be said they were some of the most interesting snow angels in the park.

Eventually, however, the time had come to split up- Duke and Tristan taking as long as possible to say goodbye to Serenity of course; they had to make the most of the time she had in town- and, with seasonal goodbyes, they had gone their separate ways.

Now, Téa was at home, warm and dry after another long shower, in her old pyjamas, with a mug of hot chocolate, she finally managed to get online to see if Kaiba had begun anything. No, she hadn't forgotten. If she was honest, she hadn't stopped thinking about it.

Of course, being Téa, actually being rather innocent and naive, she didn't realise what this meant about the way she felt…

True to form, Kaiba had sent her something, on the 22nd. Téa couldn't help but laugh as she opened it. He had sent her a Christmas E-card. Why he couldn't use the postal service, or hand deliver it, like anyone else was quite beyond her.

She sipped from her drink, smiling, as animated penguins and snowmen wearing Santa hats bobbled round on her monitor, under the heading 'Merry Christmas'. Eventually, a penguin and a snowman moved aside, and a box faded in, with a message in it, obviously automated, as you could see what Seto had put in and what had been supplied:

DEAR: Téa

Yes, I know. This was the only Christmas one I could find that wasn't too inappropriate. Ghastly, isn't it? I could go on about commercialism, but as I live off it, I'll decline. Anyway, our run-in in that lift was certainly an experience. I have to say, your singing is absolutely appalling, Gardner. Still, at least you didn't get your words 'mufuddled'. I suppose you still want to hear my voice…? Merry Christmas.

SEASONS GREETINGS!

I GOT THIS E-CARD FROM Kaiba.

Téa couldn't help but laugh at the 'Merry Christmas'. It seemed so awkward, so out of place, tacked onto the end of the message like that…

Quickly, she opened an E-mail window and typed one back:

Well, Kaiba, I don't have a fancy E-card like you d

Then, she closed the thing. What was she doing? How did she know he was joking with those insults? What tone should she write a reply in?

Fortunately, the problem was solved for her when the little window appeared telling her that Seto himself had just signed in. Well… She'd have to say something…

Hi.

Then, before he replied, she added:

My voice is -Not- appalling!

And so began another interesting conversation with Seto Kaiba. He kept telling her off for distracting him from his work. She pointed out that he was at home already, so he really didn't need to, that he could sign out if he wanted to, and, that, in his own words, she was 'entertaining' him. Then she managed to push the subject round to what she really wanted to talk about.

Speaking of witch, when are –you- going to entertain –me-?

Oh, not that again…

Yes, that again! You still have to sing!

She heard the phone ringing out in the hall, and went to get it. It was wireless, so she could talk to the person and still keep track of her conversation with Seto. Oh, the wonders of a broadband connection. She knew who it would be- one of her parents. They were flying back that evening, and always rang before they got on the plane.

"Hi!" She said, cheerily. She felt unbelievably happy, and for no good reason. An overdose of the Christmas Spirit. On screen, Kaiba was trying to outsmart her by just typing lyrics out on screen. Well, he wasn't going to get away with that!

"Hiya love." Her mom, sounding tired replied. "You alright?"

"I'm fine." Téa responded, using her shoulder to hold the phone whilst she typed back a message to Seto. She smiled- her mom had started speaking with an Irish accent again… Her grandmother, on her mother's side, had been born over on the island. When her grandfather had died, her grandmother and her mother's youngest sister, Téa's aunt, had gone back there. Téa's mother had decided to stay behind. She was the eldest, and had already built a life for herself in Japan. "Did you have a good time? How's Aunt Sue? And Nanny?"

"They're fine." Téa's mom assured her. "Your Nan's arthritis is acting up again, but she gets along. Listen, Téa…"

At the tone of her voice, Téa's smile instantly faded, and she stopped looking at what Seto was saying to pay full attention to the voice in her ear. The connection wasn't all that great. Her parents were half way across the world, after all…

"What's wrong?" Téa demanded, urgently. "Are you okay?"

"Calm down!" Her mom insisted. "We're fine. Just a bit…stranded."

Téa leapt up. "Stranded!" She screamed.

"It seems the baggage handlers are on strike." Her mother replied, glumly. "They'll take us free on another flight… but it's going to be at least as Boxing Day."

"Oh…" Téa said, miserably.

"I'm sorry, darling…" Her mother sounded just as upset. "We'll have our Christmas when we get home, okay? We'll make it up to you."

"It's not your fault." Téa said, glumly. They said their goodbyes, and she hung up.

So. It seemed she would be spending Christmas all alone this year. The others all had families to be with… She'd be lonely this Christmas.

Gardner, have you left me?

Seto's demand flickered on screen.

But your conversation is so –enthralling-!

Téa looked at it for a moment, then, annoyed at the sarcasm, hit the close button on the internet.

She didn't want to talk to him anyway.

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

--- 25th December---Christmas Day!

Christmas day dawned much like any other. It was strange, but, when you've got no-one to celebrate with, there didn't seem as much to it. No-one to give gifts to. No-one to receive gifts from. No-one to wish a happy Christmas, to eat with, to toast…

But, Téa reminded herself, firmly. That's not what Christmas is about, is it? Not really…

Her parents were adamant about keeping traditions, especially Christmas ones. And one of those traditions was that the Gardner family always went to the Christmas service at the local Church. Her parents weren't home, but Téa decided to go anyway. Why not? It would be better then sitting here all day…

Then she realised that if she wanted to go, she'd have to hurry or be late. So, for the second time in less then a week, she rushed out as fast as possible, forgetting to lock the door behind her in her haste.

The room was still- there wasn't much going on in there now.

Then, some time later… there came the slightest movement from outside…

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

Seto shuffled impatiently on the doorstep. "She's not home." He said, finally. "Can we go?"

"No way!" Mokuba insisted. "You're the one that wanted to do this. So you're not leaving till you've done it!"

"Mokuba, if she's not at home…"

"Maybe she just didn't hear the bell!" Mokuba said cheerily. "You just have to knock real loud!" He did, banging happily on the door. "Yo, Téa, open up!" To his surprise, the door did open up, on it's own. "Téa…?" He said, cautiously, poking his head around the door. "Are you alright…?"

Seto tensed. He could think of only one reason why the door would be unlocked- Téa would never forget something so important. So… He swallowed, his mouth oddly dry. Mokuba had disappeared inside, and Seto hurried after him. If there had been a robbery, an attack, no way was his brother going in there alone.

Seto just hoped Téa hadn't been caught up in it.

Purely because he'd come all the way out here, of course. He didn't want it to be any more of a waste of time then it already was.

The telephone was ringing when they went in, echoing out into the silent house. Then the Answer machine kicked in, and the ghost of Téa's voice echoed out. She must have recorded the message recently…

"Hey, this is the Gardner house!" The recording said cheerfully, imitating her voice. "The house must be empty, but leave a message after the beep and I'll call you back soon!"

The beep rang out, long and forlorn.

"Hey honey!" A voice said at the other end of the line. Seto glared at the machine suspiciously. It was a male voice. 'Honey'… Did that mean Téa was…? "I guess you must have gone to Church, but I'm just phoning to give you some good news- mom and I can get a flight home tonight! We'll be back early boxing day! Mom sends her love. Guess we'll see you soon! Bye!" It clicked off.

Seto stood, feeling slightly relieved, but had no idea why. It was just her father. Then he felt more then a little embarrassed. She really was just out. So they had no right to be here.

"Mokuba?" He called, urgently. His brother had disappeared into the house. "You heard the man. She's at Church. Let's go."

Mokuba appeared at one of the doorways. "Seto… It's Christmas day and she hasn't got her decorations up yet!"

"Oh."

"But…" Mokuba pulled his best puppy-eyes. He proffered a box. "I found them, look! We could-"

"No." Seto interrupted flatly.

"I can do them! You saw-"

"After what you did to the house 'decorating', you're not doing it here to." Seto said, firmly. He didn't need another disaster like that.

"But…"

"No. Now, we shouldn't be here! Let's go before… Hello, Gardner."

Téa stood in the doorway behind him. "Hey, Kaiba."

Oh, nerts…

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

"You're an idiot."

"Don't tease me when my head hurts…"

"I can't believe we're even related…"

Joey pouted. "Hey! It is not my fault! I wasn't the one who put a lamppost there!"

"Joey…" Serenity rolled her eyes. "That lamppost has been there since we had gas lights1"

"Well, the ice then!"

"You were running along the street! Was it any wonder you slipped?"

"I was only running 'cause we were late!"

"We were late for a film you were recording anyway!" Serenity sighed. "You need to calm down!"

"It's Christmas!" Joey protested. "It's supposed to be full of excitement!"

"Oh, I'm sure you'll get plenty of that, spending it in a hospital." She said, sarcastically.

And Joey had no reply to that.

They had gone walking, up to the Beacon to see the city covered in snow. Walking back, Joey had realised they would miss the beginning of the Christmas film, unless they hurried. So he'd hurried, slipped, and knocked himself out on a lamppost. Now he had to stay in hospital all that day and overnight to keep a check for concussion.

Yep, just another Christmas for Joey Wheeler.

"Anyway, 'Ren, listen…" Joey said. "I don't think you should have to spend your Christmas here."

Serenity remained silent. No, she didn't think she should have to either. But it couldn't be helped.

"So I think you should go crash Téa's!" Joey concluded.

"What? I can't just show up uninvited!"

"Yugi said her parents got stuck over in Ireland, so she'll be all alone." He informed her. "So, I bet she'd appreciate the company!"

Serenity considered, then nodded. "Alright. I'll go over."

Of course, Téa was not as alone as they thought.

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

"What are you doing here?" Téa demanded.

Seto considered. He could explain, but that would be embarrassing, and make him seem foolish. But maybe he could distract her… "Merry Christmas." He said, roughly, pushing a brightly wrapped parcel into her hands.

Téa stared at it. "What's this…?" She asked. Behind her, Mokuba slipped out the house, unnoticed- he got the feeling he didn't want to see this, whichever way it went.

"It's a present." Seto stated, flatly. "I believe it's customary to give them at Christmas, is it not?" He went to leave.

"Hey…uh… wait!" Téa insisted. He turned. "Thanks." She said, sounding surprised.

"You're welcome." He took another step towards the door. He just wanted to leave…

"I don't have anything for you…" Téa despaired.

Seto snorted. "I didn't expect you to. It just seemed I upset you online the other day, so…"

"What?" Téa blinked in confusion. "You didn't upset me…"

"Oh." Seto's feeling of foolishness was steadily increasing. "Well. That's alright then."

"But…" Téa's look of concentration was hilarious. "It's still a nice gesture… Oh, I know!" Her face lit up. "Why don't you spend Christmas here?"

Seto looked at her like she was mad.

"Well, it's the only way I can think of to repay you…" She shrugged. "And as I'm in an empty house anyway… Oh!" She smiled. "Mokuba to, of course!"

Seto wanted to decline, he really, really did. But before he could think of a way to word it, his mouth blurted out: "Sure, why not? Thank you."

Mokuba was surprised. Téa was surprised. But no-one was more surprised then Seto himself.

"Well…" Téa said slowly, clapping her hands. "I guess I'd better get some decorations up tout suite!"

Seto smirked, wondering if she actually spoke French, or if it was just that one phrase. It was better to concentrate on that rather the wonder why he had accepted the offer…

Could it be that he actually-?

"Why don't you go and find Mokuba?" Téa suggested.

"Mais oui…" Seto muttered, by way of reply.

…What on Earth was he doing here…?

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

Ryou was bored. That could happen, sometimes. His walls, friendly as they were, weren't exactly conversationalists. Yugi had invited him a few weeks ago to spend Christmas with him and his grandfather, but Ryou had declined. He'd just feel weird, intruding even on such a small family…

Still. He was beginning to regret it, just a little…

Wait. Hadn't Yugi said the other day that Téa's parents were still over in Ireland? She'd probably be as bored as he was. Maybe he would go and drop in for a little while…

Of course, she wasn't bored anymore then she was alone.

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

"Okay, I've got coke, lemonade, and… and…" Téa gave up even trying to speak, and let the laughter come, thundering through and out of her.

"This isn't funny." Seto glared up at her.

"Hi, Téa!" Mokuba said, cheerily. "I found all the tree trimmings, but not a tree! So I thought Seto would do!"

"So I can see…" Téa spluttered. Seto looked ridiculous. She didn't know how Mokuba had done it, nor did she particularly care. By whatever method, Seto was now tied, with reams of red tinsel, to a chair. And in all the parts of him that weren't covered in the stuff, Mokuba had hung all the tree decorations, including a bauble over each of his ears. Téa dreaded to think how many hooks were sticking in him… Mokuba was now trying, unsuccessfully, to balance the star on his older brother's head.

"Yes." Seto said, trying to sound as dignified as possible whilst being decorated. "Now, if you wouldn't mind untying me…"

Téa smiled. She was fairly sure Seto could get out of there himself, if he wanted to. Maybe he just didn't want to kill Mokuba's dream…

"Oh, but you make such a good tree…" she teased lightly. "I think we should leave you for a while." She walked over to the CD player, put the volume up as high as it would go, and turned on her Christmas Album. "In the meantime, Mokuba, let's have some fun!"

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

"Serenity?"

She turned at the voice, her confused frown momentarily replaced by a welcoming smile. "Oh, hey Ryou!" She greeted as he came and stood next to her, just outside Téa's garden wall. "What brings you here?"

"I just thought I'd come and see Téa, if she was all on her own." He explained. "And yourself?"

"Same." Serenity shrugged. "Joey managed to knock himself out on a lamppost and now he's got to stay in hospital overnight."

Ryou tried to look concerned, but couldn't keep the corners of his mouth from twitching. "Is he alright?" He enquired.

"Fine." Serenity sighed.

"Good." Ryou replied, mildly. "That means I can laugh at him." However, it was Serenity that chuckled, not him. "So, shall we?" Ryou asked, gesturing at Téa's door.

"That's just it." Serenity frowned. "She's playing music… And this car," She pointed at the fancy posh vehicle parked up on the kerb "Is right outside…"

"Hmm…" Ryou pondered. "Well then. I guess she has guests. I wouldn't want to intrude…"

"No." Serenity agreed, sighing again. "I guess I'll just go back to the hospital…"

"And I'll go back to my Walls." Ryou added.

"Your walls?" Serenity repeated, confused.

"Oh, yes." Ryou said, flatly. "They don't say much, but once you get to know them, they're the life and soul of the party."

Serenity was laughing again. She had a pretty, quiet, unobtrusive laugh… The odd thing was that she was laughing at something he'd said. Not many people laughed around him.

"Well, I guess I'll have to come and met your walls someday." Serenity joked.

"Oh, yes, you must." Ryou answered, playing along. "Actually, why not come now?"

"Now?" Serenity echoed.

Ryou shrugged, but was still smiling. "Sure. Just thought I'd ask… Still, if you'd rather not…"

"No." She smiled back. "I'd love to. Thanks."

"Well…" Ryou turned to lead the way. "I'm sure my walls will be very pleased to meet you."

And so, Serenity never made it to Téa's, and neither did Ryou. But it didn't matter. No-one was alone anymore.

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

Seto would loathe to admit it, but he had enjoyed himself- once a real tree had been acquired and he'd been freed, that was. Although, that hadn't been too bad either. They had talked, and laughed, and for some reason just being in her neat, cosy house with all the candles lit and flaring had made him relax more then he had in years. Téa seemed to just emit that aura, it oozing out of her.

Or maybe it was something else. He'd have to buy some candles.

Now, however, to his reluctance, it was time to go. He pulled himself up, and Mokuba and Téa stood to, heading out into the hall.

"Well, T- Gardner," He corrected himself. "I have to hand it to you, I haven't had a Christmas like this for a long time."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it, Kaiba." She smiled, sweetly. "But you're not leaving yet, are you?"

Oh, no…

"We need to be getting back." Seto replied, hastily.

"That was a rhetorical question." Téa smirked. Seto knew what was coming, and closed his eyes. "You still have one thing to do."

"And what's that?"

"You still have to sing for me!" She insisted, eyes twinkling.

A heavy, dangerous silence fell. Mokuba knew that silence, and he twisted uncomfortably.

"Mokuba, go and wait in the car." Seto said, icily.

"But…"

"Now!"

Mokuba went, and Seto shut the front door behind him.

"Now…" He repeated, slowly, determinedly, stepping towards Tea. Instinctively, she backed away. "What's all this about…?"

"You said you'd sing for me." Téa said, not backing down anymore, looking him right in the eye. He had nice eyes, she noticed.

"I did no such thing." Seto replied, stepping forward. Téa stepped back. They moved a little further down the hallway.

"Yes, you did." Téa said, stubbornly. "When we were stuck in the lift."

Seto suddenly stopped backing her down the hallway, and seemed to deflate a little.

"You're not going to drop this, are you?" He sighed.

"No!"

He didn't say anything, but his shoulders shook. After a moment, Téa realised he was quietly chuckling.

"Stubborn as a mule." He commented. "That's what I like about you."

"Oh, so you like me now?" Téa asked, raising an eyebrow. "I thought you couldn't stand any of us."

"I like you." Seto admitted. "I like you very much."

And, just to prove his point, he moved in, and kissed her gently.

"Happy Christmas." He said simply, before swinging out of the doorway and across the street.

Téa shut the door behind him, a huge, sappy grin plastered across her face. She leant on the closed door, touching her mouth as though she couldn't believe what had happened.

Oh yes. She'd say it had been a very happy Christmas indeed. And, if that was anything to go by, it looked like the New Year was going to be even better…

THE END

A/N: Whoooo… Okie, by my standards that was LONG! And just got it done in time for Christmas to! I didn't have time to proof-read (Sorry...) but...And speaking of Christmas, have a great one, everybody:D